Meyer Burger pulls emergency brake: bankruptcy for German subsidiaries!

Meyer Burger pulls emergency brake: bankruptcy for German subsidiaries!

Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Deutschland - The Swiss solar manufacturer Meyer Burger today pulled the emergency brake with its three German subsidiaries and filed for bankruptcy. This affects a total of around 600 employees at the locations in Bitterfeld-Wolfen and Hohenstein-Ernstthal. Meyer Burger Industries in Bitterfeld-Wolfen employs 331 employees, while Meyer Burger Germany employs 289 employees in the field of mechanical engineering and technology development in Hohenstein-Ernstthal. Despite intensive renovation efforts, companies had not yet been able to stabilize their financial situation. The procedure for bankruptcy is now continued with a legally appointed preliminary insolvency administrator ( bnn.de ).

The decision to apply for bankruptcy follows a number of financial difficulties that Meyer Burger has experienced in recent months. In order to defuse the situation, an extension of the deadline for presenting the business figures for 2024 was also requested. This was originally due for May 31. In the course of current developments, the solar module production in the US state of Arizona, which was under construction, was also discontinued. However, the subsidiaries in Switzerland and the United States should remain ( bnn.de ).

short -time work and material bottlenecks

In addition, there are further adjustments to the staff for cost reduction. This development is in the context of a general market situation that is characterized by a slump in demand for photovoltaic systems. Many companies in the solar industry have already registered bankruptcy or had to hire their business. These include, for example, special sun, Amia Energy and the start-up Zolar, which released more than half of its employees. The renewed decline in demand came in early 2024 and continued all year round. A survey among installers also shows that more than two thirds of them have experienced a significant decline in demand ( fr.de ).

outlook and industry situation

The solar and photovoltaic industry had experienced a damper in 2024, which is due to increasing gas prices due to the Ukraine war. However, the energy transition did not endanger this, so that industry experts remain optimistic in the long term. They expect the market to stabilize in the middle to the end of the 2030s. The prices for solar modules have come under pressure, especially because of the competition with cheaper Asian products that make up over 94% of the available PV modules on the German market ( fr.de ).